All of Jacob Emerick's posts, page 8 of 57.

Anchors Class

After a lengthy delay, I took a second climbing class from Arizona Mountaineering Club in April. Lengthy delay because I took the first class, 'basics', last fall and haven't climbed since, so it felt a little awkward coming back to the group for anchors. The knots and some of the techniques came…

  • Category Personal
  • Posted May 2, 2018
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Another Motherlode Attempt

Morning blues over Brown's Peak

Driving up to Lone Pine Saddle hasn't gotten any more fun since the last visit. It's been almost two years and the long haul up AZ-87, boring swing down 188, and then bumpy drive up El Oso wasn't missed. At least I had my sister and her boyfriend as company on the drive. We were going to meet…

  • Category Hiking
  • Posted April 28, 2018
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Fig Trail and a Kayak

Tara being far too excited about the trip

There is a lonely trail on the east side of the Verde River that doesn't connect to anything, barely sees any traffic, and isn't even part of the Mazatzal Wilderness. It's along the foothills of those mountains, though, so I decided to include it in my general 'hike all the Mazzies' project. Getting…

  • Category Hiking
  • Posted March 3, 2018
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Task Management

Managing my daily life with a todo app is the only way I can hope to function any more. In college I used a combination of OneNote and good ol' paper and pencil, and since 2009 I've been using Remember the Milk exclusively. And by that I mean I use it for everything - workout reminders, work, blog…

  • Category Personal
  • Posted February 23, 2018
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Several Ways to Drink Coffee

An old favorite, the French Press

Coffee is something that has embedded itself into most of my routines, as it has most red-blooded Americans. It started in college with cream-and-sugar concoctions that the thought of makes my stomach churn and has since changed into a purer enjoyment of plain black brews. Nowadays it's a standard,…

  • Category Personal
  • Posted February 3, 2018
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Fuller Seep

Early morning light on North Peak

Heading out on an ambitious backpack in the Mazatzal Wilderness seemed like the perfect way to end 2017. Of course, backpacking in the end of December meant dealing with cold temperatures, even in Arizona, so my pack was heavy with all the cold-weather gear that usually collects dust in my closet.…

  • Category Hiking
  • Posted January 17, 2018
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East End of Davenport Wash Trail

Red rock formations about Red Rock Spring

Finding a good spot to continue east on Davenport Wash Trail was more difficult than I anticipated. The wash below Club Cabin was nothing but a tangled mess of cat claw that obscured any reasonable path forward. After pacing back and forth for a few minutes I spotted a lonely cairn across the wash…

  • Category Hiking
  • Posted January 9, 2018
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Sheep Creek Trail

Early light on Squaw Flat

Dim morning light cast the twisted, fire-damaged tree trunks of Squaw Flat into bizarre silhouettes. I shivered and pushed forward on the overgrown trail. This was the third time I've been on Squaw Flat this year and, while the path is becoming easier to remember, the aftermath of 2012's Sunflower…

  • Category Hiking
  • Posted January 5, 2018
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Resolutions for 2018, I Suppose

My goals for last year got massively derailed. I did not hike the Grand Canyon, take my boys backpacking, or do any significant work on my website. Two events forced me to pivot: the creation of the Mazatzal Project and joining up with a local search and rescue group. So, I suppose that 2017 was…

  • Category Personal
  • Posted January 2, 2018
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What is an API Developer?

For the last two years I've been working in the role of an API developer at Shutterstock. This was, initially, a career move that seemed to be both simple and stable. After all, working on an API is just making sure some lightweight application spit out JSON to match an interface, right? Wrong. The…

  • Category Personal
  • Posted November 25, 2017
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Activity Stream

  • Read 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King.
  • Read Elantris (Elantris, #1) by Brandon Sanderson.
  • Read It by Stephen King.
  • Read Mistborn Trilogy (Mistborn, #1-3) by Brandon Sanderson.
  • Read Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson.
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